Trending
AA
+Text Size
- Small
- Medium
- Large
The Trump White House received backlash for suggesting France should be grateful for U.S. help in WWII after a French politician suggested the U.S. return the Statue of Liberty. Responses highlighted France’s crucial role in America’s independence, the German defeat by Russia, and French support for American freedom over Indian aid against the British.
WASHINGTON : The smackdown was swift, but the blowback was brutal. The Trump White House on Monday reaped a whirlwind in history after sowing the wind with a snarky putdown to a French politician’s suggestion that the United States should return the Statue of Liberty, a gift from France, because Americans have chosen tyranny over freedom.
“If it weren’t for the U.S., the French would be speaking German right now. So, they should be very grateful to our great country,” White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt clapped back, alluding to U.S help during World War Two when Hitler’s Germany marched into France.
The putdown came in response to remarks by Raphaël Glucksmann, a left-wing politician in France, who said “It (Statue of Liberty) was our gift to you. But apparently you despise her. So she will be happy here with us.”
Leavitt also referred to Glucksmann as an “unnamed, low-level politician,” manifesting the disdain with which the Trump White House speaks of many foreign leaders not aligned with its MAGA worldview.
Blowback to the comments from the White House spokesperson came not from the French, but from many Americans better versed in history.
“Such a shocking, insulting statement about an ally from anyone, let alone a senior White House official. I hope our @PressSec knows that it’s only because of the French that we have an independent United States of America,” Michael McFaul, a former US ambassador to Russia, said. Many others pointed out that it was German defeat at the hands of Russia on the eastern front that save France.
Indeed, French help in freeing America from British colonial rule is consecrated right in front of the White House at Lafayette Park, with a statue of Major General Marquis Gilbert de Lafayette, who fought alongside George Washington at the Battle of Yorktown. Washington DC itself is a French-designed city, laid out by Pierre Charles L’Enfant — buried in Arlington National Cemetery — on the lines of Paris and Versailles.
Lost on the briefing cross-talk: French support for American freedom came in preference to India, where Haidar Ali and Tipu Sultan beseeched Louis XVI, and later Napolean, for help against the British, only to see them choose to fund the Americans. Ironically, Lord Cornwallis who surrendered at Yorktown in 1781 later went to India and played a key role in defeating Tipu Sultan in the Battle of Srirangapatna
A little spark of that history is preserved in the American national anthem, the star spangled banner, in which the line “rockets red glare” is a reference to Congreve rockets used during the bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor. The artillery was inspired by iron-cased rockets using by Tipu’s forces during the Anglo-Mysore war
Rajghatta is author of Kamala Harris: Phenomenal Woman
End of Article
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Previous
Khushi to Shanaya Kapoor: Destination wedding wardrobe inspired by Bollywood’s GenZ kids
Nora Fatehi’s saree chronicles: 10 style lessons from her ethnic looks
10 high-protein desi rice bowls for bachelors
10 quotes by Kahlil Gibran that help see the good in life
Keerthy Suresh’s indo-western is perfect for the wedding season
10 rarest and most beautiful caterpillars
The only 5 countries in the world starting with letter ‘D’
10 most beautiful purple flowers for the home and garden
10 South Indian-style Paneer dishes
Next
- 1
- 2
- 3
6 benefits of consuming chia seed water at night
What happens when you drink Amla, Beetroot, and Carrot Juice daily on an empty stomach
8 foods to keep your kidneys healthy
5 powerful ingredients to mix with Coconut Oil for instant hair regrowth on bald patches
7 benefits of drinking lemon water with black salt, turmeric and cinnamon powder daily after dinner
Magnesium doesn’t work alone: Foods that you need to pair it with
7 vitamin-D rich foods for vegetarians
World’s 5 most visually stunning and unique bridges
- 1
- 2
- 3
Tired of too many ads?go ad free now
In World
Entire Website
- Nagpur Violence Live Updates: Curfew in parts of Nagpur; situation tense but under control over Aurangzeb tomb row
- Nagpur violence: Arson, stone-pelting, attack on cops and curfew, how city endured a night full of chaos
- Youth ‘offloaded’ from Hyderabad-Varanasi flight for trying to remove cover plate of emergency exit door
- Stock market today: BSE Sensex rallies over 1,200 points; Nifty50 above 22,850 – top 8 reasons for D-Street party
- ‘Attacker and victim were put on par’: Jaishankar takes a jibe at UN, cites Kashmir, calls for fair global order
- DDA offers 828 LIG, EWS flats; booking starts today
- Sunita Williams departs ISS for Earth: How and where she will land, when and where to watch
- Parliament Budget Session Live Updates: ‘World witnessed grandeur of India during Maha Kumbh,’ PM Modi in Lok Sabha
- Sunita Williams Return Live Updates: Nasa astronauts Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore depart space station after nine months in orbit
- Israel launches deadly airstrikes on Gaza after truce talks stall; over 200 killed
- Investors wealthier by Rs 8.67 L cr in 2 days – Why markets are rising
- One hour into Trump-Putin call, White House says it is ‘going well’
- How list of India’s enemies killed in Pakistan is getting longer
- ‘Vacate PoK’: MEA slams Pak for calling PM Modi’s remark ‘misleading’
- Nagpur clashes: Hindu outfit leaders booked for ‘hurting religious sentiments’
- ‘A PM who can hug both Putin, Zelenskyy’: Tharoor on his ‘egg on face’ moment
- Why is India hiding fab four who will be part of Gaganyaan mission?
- Elon Musk names Jeff Bezos & Google, Oracle founders as smartest people he knows
- US says Hamas solely to blame for resumption of Gaza hostilities
- Sunita Williams headed back: Why 8-day mission turned into 9 months in space
Tired of too many ads?go ad free now